The present invention relates to a facsimile system which has a so-called multi-address calling function of transmitting identical original information to a plurality of parties.
An example of prior art facsimile systems of the type referred to is shown in FIG. 1. The facsimile system has such a multi-address calling function that application of a multi-address calling instruction from an operating panel 8 to a control unit 2 causes an automatic dialing set 6 to sequentially call telephone numbers of a plurality of parties and transmit identical original information thereto. The multi-address calling function of the prior art system will be detailed by referring to a flowchart of FIG. 2.
First, at a step 401, an original document to be multi-address called is set on a reader 1. Then at a step 402, a "multi-address call" key at the operating panel 8 is depressed to send a multi-address calling instruction to the control unit 2. At a step 403, the control unit 2 stores picture data of the original read by the reader 1 into a memory 3. The control unit 2, at a step 404, reads out of the memory 3 one of telephone numbers (which are previously stored in the memory 3) to be multi-address called and supplies it to the autodialer 6 which in turn sends a dial signal to a line 7 through a network control unit 5, whereby the facsimile equipment is connected to the party facsimile equipment. Thereafter, control unit 2 reads the picture data out of the memory 3 and transmits it onto the line 7 through a modem 4 and the network control unit 5. After having transmitted the picture data to one destination, the control unit 2 completes its communication with the destination facsimile equipment and cuts off the line. After this, the control unit 2 reads the second destination telephone number from the memory 3 and sends it to the autodialer 6. This causes the autodialer 6 to send a dial signal onto the line 7 through the network control unit 5, so that the present facsimile equipment is connected to the second destination facsimile equipment, after which the control unit 2 reads the same picture data as in the first case out of the memory 3 and sends it to the second destination facsimile equipment. In this manner, the control unit 2 sequentially reads all of the destination telephone numbers to be multi-address called in order to sequentially transmit the same picture data to these destinations. In the multi-address calling operation at the step 404, if the calling facsimile equipment cannot be connected to the destination office due to a busy office line or if transmission of the original to any of the destinations results in abnormal termination, then the control unit 2 tries the transmission the predetermined number of times and starts its transmission to the next destination, in which case the control unit 2 stores the busy and abnormal-termination destination offices in the memory 3. Next, the control proceeds to a step 405 where the control unit 2 retrieves data from the memory 3 and judges whether or not the multi-address calling communication has been normally terminated over all the destination offices. When it is judged that communication terminated normally, the control goes to a step 406. If not then the control goes to a step 407. At the step 406, the control unit 2 causes a printer 9 to output an normal termination journal, completing the processing. At the step 407, the control unit 2 reads out from the memory 3 the destination offices which have been busy and abnormally terminated, controls to cause the printer 9 to output these offices as an abnormal termination journal and subsequently completing the processing.
In this way, the prior art facsimile system has been defective in that, in order to confirm the result of whether the multi-address calling communication has been normally or abnormally terminated, the operator must take the trouble, after completion of the multi-address calling communication, to go to the place where the printer 9 is installed to check it, which is highly inconvenient to the operator working in a different place from the printer.